DIGITAL.NEOSKOSMOS.COM THE WEEKEND NEOS KOSMOS | SATURDAY 10 MARCH 2018 27 SPORT Petratos in line for Socceroos debut after inclusion in preliminary squad Newcastle Jets playmaker Dimi Petratos has caught the eye of new Socceroos coach Bert Van Marwijk. PHOTO: NEWCASTLE JETS FACEBOOK GEORGE STOGIANNOU Newcastle Jets' playmaker Dimi Petratos has been rewarded for his excellent ALeague form in his first season at Newcastle Jets with a call-up to Socceroo coach Bert Van Marwijk's preliminary 29-player squad. They are preparing for the Socceroos' two friendly matches against Norway and Columbia in Europe later this month before the FIFA World Cup finals matches begin at the end of June. Petratos caught the eye of new coach Van Marwijk on his recent visit to Australia, his first since being appointed Socceroos' boss. The 25-year-old Petratos has scored nine goals for the Jets this season and is a major contributor in the club's push for a top two spot this season. Capped 10 times at the national youth and U23 levels, Petratos may get the chance for a senior debut in the upcoming friendlies given that the coach will be keen to see how he performs at international level. Having said that, Australia has no shortage of midfield talent that Van Mar- wijk can call upon. Petratos joins full back Alex Gersbach in the preliminary squad, while Chris Ikonomidis, who recently returned to the A-League, missed selection to the squad. Petratos was one of seven new or returning players added to the squad since their most recent incarnation defeating Honduras last year in the World Cup qualification play-offs. Other additions include Petratos' former Jets teammate and now J-League-bound Andrew Nabbout, keeper Brad Jones, striker Jamie MacLaren, defenders James Mer- edith, Aleksandar Susnjar, and Josh Risdon, and midfielders Josh Brillante and James Troisi. Another notable inclusion is Tim Cahill who retains his place despite limited game time at club level since his last appearance in a Socceroos shirt. Coach van Marwijk commented after naming the preliminary squad, "Since my appointment with the Socceroos, my staff, scouts, and I have monitored over 100 Australian players in the ALeague, as well as in leagues across Europe and Asia." "There are still a couple of weeks before the group gathers in Oslo, so we will continue to monitor the health and fitness of all the players in the preliminary squad, as well as those on our longer list of potential World Cup squad members. "Our upcoming matches against will provide a great chance for the players selected to press their claims for Russia, however the door remains ajar for all players not picked for the March window." Van Marwijk is expected to trim the squad further next week before naming his final squad for the two international friendlies. Socceroos squad: Aziz Behich, Josh Brillante, Tim Cahill, Milos Degenek, Alex Gersbach, Jackson Irvine, Mile Jedinak, Brad Jones, Tomi Juric, Matt Jurman, Robbie Kruse, Mitch Langerak, Mat Leckie, Massimo Luongo, Jamie Maclaren, James Meredith, Mark Milligan, Aaron Mooy, Andrew Nabbout, Dimi Petratos, Josh Risdon, Tom Rogic, Nikita Rukavytsya, Mat Ryan, Trent Sainsbury, Aleksandar Susnjar, James Troisi, Danny Vukovic, and Bailey Wright. Surprise surprise: Sydney Olympic FC appoints Abbas Saad as new head coach Sydney Olympic FC has made an eleventh hour coaching change by appointing club Hall of Fame member Abbas Saad as their new head coach. The appointment came as the club announced the departure of senior coach Gorka Etxeberria just a week before the opening round match of the new NPL season against Bonnyrigg White Eagles. Spanish coach Etxeberria's departure comes just eight months after his appointment in July last year when he replaced Jaime Monroy who also had a short tenure at Belmore. The club itself gave little explanation for Etxeberria's surprise departure given that he had prepared the team throughout almost the entire pre-season program. On his Facebook page, Etxeberria states it was the club's decision to terminate his tenure as head coach but only hinted in general terms as to why the decision was taken, saying “The club has decided to remove me from the 1st (sic) team coach role and I agree that that's the best option if they want to change the course of the project that we were building. I'm very grateful for the opportunity given me to know Australia and to coach Sydney Olym- pic FC for these 10 months, and I wish the best to SOFC in the season that starts next week. I'm going to stay in Australia a little more working for the person that brought me here, free from the bench, helping him in the project that he wants to build. Anyway, this will let me much more freedom to come back home and hopefully to share my time between Sydney and San Sebastian." In the club's official statement on the matter club president Bill Papas said, "The club would like to thank Gorka for his contri- bution in both building and developing our squad and the experience and mentoring he has provided our coaching staff throughout the club in his time here. We wish him the very best for his future endeavours. "It's always important to transition quickly when making a decision like this and we are delighted to announce that Olympic Hall of Fame member Abbas Saad has been appointed to the role of first grade coach for the 2018 season." Saad, convicted of matchfixing in Singapore in 1995, went on to coach Penrith Nepean United in the NSW Premier League, served as a technical youth director at Sydney Olympic in 2009, and as head coach of the Australian Deaf Football Team, as well as head coach of the GIS Academy at the Garden International School in Malaysia. It remains to be seen what impact such a late coaching change will have on the team's performance. How long the players take to adapt to new coach Saad's coaching ideas and style could be crucial to Olympic's season. Like all other teams, Olympic will be looking for a positive start to the season. Abbas Saad